Chapter 48: Living Nightmare

Yu Mei hung from the cold, rusted chains, her body a patchwork of bruises, filth, and old wounds. The air in Blazing Purgatory was thick with damp rot, the iron tang of blood never truly fading. The dim, flickering lights overhead only deepened the shadows stretching across the cell.

The drugs forced down her throat had long since eroded her mind, leaving her in a perpetual state of delirium—trapped between nightmares and the cruel, waking reality she had brought upon herself.

Yet, no matter how fractured her sanity was, she always recognized the mask.

The moment those vermillion-red eyes locked onto hers, a shriek tore from her throat—hoarse and broken from years of screaming. She thrashed wildly, chains rattling against stone, as if sheer panic alone could set her free.

She could not beg. Her tongue was long gone.

A necessary precaution. If someone ever tried to steal her from this place, she would be utterly useless—her mind beyond repair, her body beyond saving.

Lillie Bai stood before her, the stark white of her suit pristine against the filth-stained dungeon.

"Still enjoying your stay, I see," she murmured, voice laced with quiet amusement.

Yu Mei whimpered, her head lolling as she convulsed—whether from withdrawal, madness, or sheer terror, it no longer mattered.

Lillie did not visit often. Her rare appearances were the closest thing to mercy Yu Mei would ever know.

And yet, the past years had not dulled Lillie's memory.

She remembered everything.

___

When Lillie was sixteen, she had been at the threshold of her rise in the business world. Her father, Alexander Bai, had tasked her with crafting a project proposal for their company—her first true challenge, a test to prove herself.

Yu Mei had been her assistant then.

For years, Yu Mei had lingered in Lillie's shadow—not as a friend, but as a parasite. She had ingratiated herself into the Bai family, hoping to reap the wealth and privileges of being associated with them.

But Lillie never indulged her.

Neither did the entirety of the Bai family.

The Bai family was perceptive, wary. They sensed something was off about Yu Mei, though they had no proof of her deceit.

And Lillie? She trusted her, but never fully.

Her instincts whispered, warning her. Don't let her get too close.

So when Yu Mei had asked to see the proposal, Lillie had refused—excusing it as too confidential for her to read.

And that was when greed overtook loyalty—if there had ever been any loyalty to begin with.

Yu Mei had already been in contact with White Phoenix Empire's rival company. They had promised her a life of luxury—a life Lillie had denied her. All she had to do was steal the proposal.

But Yu Mei wanted more.

Stealing the project was not enough.

She wanted Lillie ruined.

Humiliated.

Destroyed.

So she had lured Lillie to an abandoned warehouse under the guise of a business opportunity. And Lillie, despite her caution, had gone.

By the time she realized the trap, it was too late.

She had been drugged.

The poison had set her veins on fire, her body weakening under its grip. Men had stood around her, watching.

Lillie could still recall the sharp sting of slaps across her face, the bruising grip on her arms. The sensation of her clothes being torn, hands reaching, bodies looming—

No.

They had never succeeded.

Because before they could, she had fought.

Even under the influence of the drug, she had ripped through them with nothing but sheer will and the combat skills drilled into her since childhood.

But the scars of that night—the fear, the rage—never faded.

Had they succeeded in their intentions, she would have bitten off her own tongue just to escape it.

Yu Mei had only herself to blame.

And so, she was given something worse than death.

___

Yu Mei screamed and gurgled, incoherent and wild, her limbs jerking against their restraints.

"You want me to leave already?" Lillie mused, tilting her head.

Yu Mei let out another strangled noise—whether in pleading or desperation, it was impossible to tell.

Lillie only smiled.

"Your wish is my command."

At her silent command, the guards moved.

The shrieking started again as the cell door groaned open. Shadows spilled inside, the scent of sweat, rot, and sickness thickening the air.

Lillie did not look back.

Some prisoners wished for death.

Yu Mei had earned something worse.

The heavy clang of the cell door echoed through the halls.

Another night in Blazing Purgatory.

Another eternity in hell.